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| Publisher |
DC |
| Published | February 2015 |
THE AMAZO VIRUS, CHAPTER FOUR: THE INFECTED All of those who were infected with the Amazo Virus have moved on to a hitherto unknown stage of infection wherein they developed a hive-mind which seeks to destroy all uninfected - all who are immune. Lex Luthor admits to Superman that when he'd developed the virus, the mice he'd tested it on had acted in coordination before dying. He'd suspected something of this nature would happen, but could never have imagined the scale. The virus is sentient. Despite Superman's annoyance and suspicion, Wonder Woman insists that he work with Lex, knowing that the only hope of developing a cure is by using a sample of Superman's blood. She reminds Lex, though, that this is his last and only chance to save the others. He promises to succeed, and she believes him, abandoning the pair of erstwhile enemies to hold off the rest of the infected League in the meantime. Superman uses his heat-vision to cut through his tough skin and provide Lex with a blood sample, warning that they don't have much time to get a cure made before infected civilians reach them. Everyone who was infected is under the control of the virus - which means they have more to worry about than the rest of the League. Wonder Woman, meanwhile, is struggling to hold her own against the others when she receives unexpected help from Captain Cold and Steve Trevor's A.R.G.U.S. team. Cold notes that the virus is making the heroes clumsier than usual, which is to their advantage. Wonder Woman notes that from what she knows, Captain Cold is a criminal. He responds that he has a stake in stopping the virus - if not stopped here, it will surely spread to Central City and infect the people he loves. Contrary to what the League might think, Captain Cold and the Rogues are for the survival of the human race. As he works, Lex wonders why Superman - who can see viruses and bacteria that cause disease - has never done anything to stop them from killing people. Superman reminds that Luthor started this pandemic. Lex insists that he can develop a cure within the next few minutes, but it could take days to produce enough to cure the hundreds who were infected. Watching Captain Cold in action, Wonder Woman realizes that despite having copied everyone's powers, patient zero has not been copying the cold of the cold gun - and they suppose that Superman's Freeze Breath might be an ability he can't copy. Hearing this, Superman abandons Lex and freezes patient zero in place, preventing his control of the other infected, and freeing Lex to distribute the vaccine. Working together, the recovered League distribute the vaccine to the rest of the world, ensuring that it will be under control within a day - however there is a complication in that roughly three percent of those infected have retained the powers they developed. This means that there could be dozens of new and untrained metahumans at large - free to become new heroes or new villains. Lex admits that this was an unintended consequence - the last thing he wanted was to create more supermen. In the meantime, Dr. Armen ikarus - patient zero - is dead. That is, the virus within him could not be killed, and it supplanted the mind that was once that of Ikarus. The president himself tasked Lex with studying patient zero, but Superman reminds that he is not ready to give up on Ikarus. Even as he says this, though, the man in the cell before them warns that there is no chance for him to be saved. The flesh is merely the incubator for the virus - and one day, it intends to infect Lex. Whatever this form was - it is now solely that of Amazo. Elsewhere, Steve Trevor looks in on Neutron, who is still ravaged by the cancers he developed while his powers were disabled by the virus. Steve promises that the doctors intend to do their best - but his prospects are not good. Grimly, Neutron responds that he wants to make a deal with Luthor. If Lex will do something for him before he dies, he will reveal who hired him to assassinate him. Meanwhile, The Flash, has made friends with the tormented Jessica Cruz - victim of the Ring of Volthoom. She explains that with all that has happened to her, she wants to learn how she can stay in control of herself and her fear. Flash reveals that he called someone to help her do exactly that - how to use willpower and the ring to her best advantage. Grinning, Green Lantern returns to Earth - eager to surprise Batman with his presence.
